Typically, people tend to believe that there is less to be won when using a lottery syndicate because they are sharing the odds with multiple people. Irelands freshest millionaires would beg to differ. The lottery syndicate, which have all been left anonymous for good reason, showed up in Dublin earlier this month to collect their massive 28.9 million EUR check. The ticket was purchased in the country town of Castlebar in the west of Ireland.
The group that makes up the winning lottery syndicate hired a spokesperson to keep their identities anonymous. ““This has come as a huge shock but we are thrilled. This will certainly make life easier for us all and will secure our futures,” said the spokesperson. The spokesperson continued, “But we are keeping level heads and we will try to take it all in and we will give it time before we decide what to do with our winnings.”
Lottery syndicates are typically made up of friends, families, coworkers or neighbors and is often a group of people who get together to purchase lottery tickets in order to increase their likelihood of winning. Access to buying lottery tickets online also facilitates options to participate in lottery syndicates to players from all over the world through licensed lottery agents. The prizes, if won, are shared throughout the group evenly. The group allows the players to cover more numbers and increase the likelihood of a big payday while the expense of the tickets is covered equally throughout the group. Lottery syndicates get a bad reputation online as you have to share winnings but when the check is big enough, sharing those winnings still deals out a life changing sum of money for most people.
Dermot Griffin is the National Lottery Chief Executive in Ireland who was absolutely charmed to deliver the winning check to the group who won it. He spoke on the group’s big win, “We always love seeing happy winners come into our winner’s room here in National Lottery headquarters. It is important these winners take the time and space to let the news sink in. This is an incredible amount of money to win, and we have recommended that the winners get independent financial and legal advice.”
The owners of the store that sold the winning ticket were over the moon about the winning syndicate. The shop’s clerk who was working that day, a 22 year-old Anmol Sagar, said he feels like Willy Wonka because he just handed out a golden ticket. The shop that sold the ticket, Garryduff XL in Castlebar, was awarded a 25,000-euro bonus for selling the ticket.
Ireland has had several lucky winners since Euromillions began handing out paydays in 2004. Dolores McNamara won a check in 2005 for 115 million EUR which immediately made her the 58th most wealthy person in the country of Ireland. Another lucky couple won 15 million euros in July of 2008 followed almost immediately by a family’s syndicate who won 29.4 million euros in June of the next year.
